University of Manchester basketball team standing tall thanks to an American coach

A basketball team who could barely win a game have become successful – after turning to an American coach. Steve Mergelsberg was drafted in by the University of Manchester men’s team after a dismal season in which they lost 10 of their 12 matches. They have racked up six wins out of six this year.

A basketball team who could barely win a game have become successful – after turning to an American coach.

Steve Mergelsberg was drafted in by the University of Manchester men’s team after a dismal season in which they lost 10 of their 12 matches. They have racked up six wins out of six this year.

Steve, 64, made the switch to Manchester from Ohio. The coach, who has worked with some of the sport’s top names on the other side of the Atlantic, said: “They amaze me. These are guys who are doing some ridiculous courses, like chemical engineering and pre-meds, but they find the time to come to training. Their commitment is astonishing.

“They spend hours studying and then they come here and leave nothing on the court. We want to win every game and we are halfway there. These guys don’t know when they are beat. In one game they were 20 points down with seven minutes to go and we won. In 30 years of coaching I have never seen that.”

Steve, who lives in Levenshulme, wants to see bigger crowds at the team’s Armitage Centre home. He added: “They are a great bunch of kids who deserve some credit.

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